IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


1.0 


I.I 


|iO    ■^~ 

'"  1^   ^ 

^  lis  izg 


2.2 


i.8 


1.25 

1.4 

J4 

" 

.< 6"     — 

► 

V] 


<^ 


/} 


% 


0% 


%.    -^    ^ 


// 


7 


M 


Photographic 

Sciences 

Corporation 


\ 


,v 


% 


^ 


^\ 


V 


^**1 


6^ 


<<?.% 


23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  MS80 

(716)  872-4503 


^ 


<i> 


CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHIVI/ICMH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  Institute  for  Historical  Microreproductions  /  Institut  Canadian  de  microreproductions  historiques 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notes/Notes  technlqc^i'  at  bibliographiques 


The  Institute  has  attempted  to  obtain  the  best 
original  copy  available  for  filming.  Features  of  this 
copy  which  may  be  bibiiographically  unique, 
which  may  alter  any  of  the  images  in  the 
reproduction,  or  which  may  significantly  change 
the  usual  method  of  filming,  are  checlced  below. 


□ 


D 


D 


D 
D 


D 


D 


Coloured  covers/ 
Couverture  de  couleur 


I     I    Covers  damaged/ 


Couverture  endommag^e 


Covers  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Couverture  restaurie  et/ou  pellicul4e 


I      I    Cover  title  missing/ 


Le  titre  de  couverture  manque 


I      I    Coloured  maps/ 


Cartes  g^ographiques  en  couleur 

Coloured  inic  (i.e.  other  than  blue  or  blacit)/ 
Encre  de  couleur  (i.e.  autre  que  bleue  ou  noire) 


I      I    Coloured  plates  and/or  illustrations/ 


Planches  et/ou  illustrations  en  couleur 

Bound  with  other  material/ 
Relid  avec  d'autres  documents 

Tight  binding  may  cause  shadows  or  distortion 
along  interior  margin/ 

La  reliure  serrde  peut  causer  de  I'ombre  ou  de  la 
distortion  le  long  de  la  marge  int6rieure 

Blank  leaves  added  during  restoration  may 
appear  within  the  text.  Whenever  possible,  these 
have  been  omitted  from  filming/ 
II  se  peut  que  certaines  pages  blanches  ajoutdes 
lors  d'une  restauration  apparaissent  dans  le  texte, 
mais,  lorsque  cela  6tait  possible,  ces  pages  n'ont 
pas  6t6  fiimies. 

Additional  comments:/ 
Commentaires  suppl6mentaires; 


L'institut  a  microfilm*  le  meilleur  exemplaire 
qu'il  lui  a  AtA  possible  de  se  procurer.  Les  details 
de  cet  exemplaire  qui  sent  peut-Atre  uniques  du 
point  de  vue  bibliographique,  qui  peuvent  modifier 
une  image  reproduite,  ou  qui  peuvent  exiger  une 
modification  dans  la  mithode  normale  de  fiimage 
sont  indiquts  ci-dessous. 


I      I   Coloured  pages/ 


^ 


EH 


Pages  de  couleur 

Pages  damaged/ 
Pages  endommagies 

Pages  restored  and/oi 

Pages  restaurdes  et/ou  pellicui6es 

Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxet 
Pages  dicoiortes,  tachetdes  ou  piqu^es 

Pages  detached/ 
Pages  d6tach6es 


I      I  Pages  damaged/ 

I      I  Pages  restored  and/or  laminated/ 

r~|  Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxed/ 

I      I  Pages  detached/ 


Showthrough/ 
Transparence 


I      I    Quality  of  print  varies/ 


The 
tot 


The 
pos 
oft 
film 


Ori( 
beg 
the 
sior 
oth< 
first 
sior 
or  il 


Quality  indgale  de  I'impresslon 

Includes  supplementary  material/ 
Comprend  du  matdriel  suppldmentaire 

Only  edition  available/ 
Seule  Mition  disponible 


The 
shal 
TIN 
whi 

Mar 
diffi 
enti 
begi 
righ 
reqi 
met 


Pages  wholly  or  partially  obscured  by  errata 
slips,  tissues,  etc.,  have  been  refilmed  to 
ensure  the  best  possible  image/ 
Les  pages  totalement  ou  partiellement 
obscurcies  par  un  feuillet  d'errata,  une  pelura, 
etc.,  ont  M  film6es  d  nouveau  de  fa^on  d 
obtenir  la  meilleure  image  possible. 


This  item  is  filmed  at  the  reduction  ratio  checlced  below/ 

Ce  document  est  film*  au  taux  de  reduction  indiqu*  ci-dessous. 


10X 

14X 

18X 

22X 

26X 

30X 

! 

V 

12X 

16X 

20X 

24X 

28X 

32X 

. 

The  copy  filmed  her*  has  been  reproduced  thanks 
to  the  generosity  of: 

Miili  Mtmorial  Library 
IMcMitter  Univariity 


L'exempiaire  film*  fut  reproduit  grice  k  l« 
gAnArositA  de: 

Milis  Mtmorial  Library 
MeMattmr  Univtnity 


The  images  appearing  here  are  the  best  quality 
possible  considering  the  condition  and  legibility 
of  the  original  copy  and  in  Iceeping  with  the 
filming  contract  specifications. 


Les  imsges  suivantes  ont  AtA  reproduites  avec  le 
plus  grand  soin.  compte  tenu  de  la  condition  et 
de  la  nettet*  de  Texemplelre  film*,  et  en 
conformity  avec  les  conditions  du  contrat  de 
filmage. 


Original  copies  in  printed  paper  covers  are  filmed 
beginning  with  the  front  cover  and  ending  on 
the  last  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, or  the  bacit  cover  when  appropriate.  All 
other  original  copies  are  filmed  lieginning  on  the 
first  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, and  ending  on  the  last  page  with  a  printed 
or  illustrated  impression. 


Les  exemplaires  originaux  dont  la  couverture  en 
papier  est  imprim6e  sont  filmte  en  commenpant 
par  le  premier  plat  et  en  terminant  soit  par  la 
derniire  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration,  so't  par  le  second 
plat,  salon  le  cas.  Tous  les  autiss  exemplaires 
originaux  sont  filmte  en  commenpant  par  la 
premiire  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustri^ation  et  en  terminant  par 
la  derni^re  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
empreinte. 


The  last  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
shall  contain  the  symbol  -^  (meaning  "CON- 
TINUED"), or  the  symbol  y  (meaning  "END"), 
whichever  applies. 


Un  des  symboles  suivants  apparaltra  sur  la 
derniire  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selon  le 
cas:  le  symbols  — ►  signifie  "A  SUIVRE",  le 
symbols  V  signifie  "FIN". 


Maps,  plates,  charts,  etc.,  may  be  filmed  at 
different  reduction  ratios.  Those  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  exposure  are  filmed 
beginning  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  as 
required.  The  following  diagrams  illustrate  the 
method: 


Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  Atre 
fiimis  A  des  taux  de  rMuction  diff^rents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  Atre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  cliche,  il  est  film*  A  partir 
de  Tangle  sup6rieur  gauche,  de  gauche  A  droite, 
et  de  haut  en  bas,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  nicessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  mAthode. 


1 

2 

3 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

'*'-':PrA 


m.  J 


*¥■■' 


n'^wK- 


,^ 


tAtt^iMimm'. 


Ti 


%  "7 


^^  ^,  <»  T  ir/f  ■»  ^WT"€f¥  T    r  ■»».▼  T  ijf^ 


fe#  ih-4  A  A  ^^»  i^..,» 


A,^  ^;..*.  ^'|>  ^i^  A  <i*^4»'jftiS»4-'iii  A.i'<Mi4iiiA  4.'^ 


A'  A.r,(»-,A 


"n-  -••"'• 


-.i^.- 


/•> 


F 
.H8 


"'Wi«wmi|fifH!fP^pwjipii|iV4iP^^ 


■  inujIH.iUM^ 


McMASTER 
UNIVERSITY 

LIBRARY 


•kr 


mmmmmmmmmmKm 


'^11.  ■    ,'1 


1; 


Father  Marquette 


AT 


MACKINAW   AND    CHICAGO. 


A  PAPER, 

Read  bkkore  the  Chicago  Historical  Society,  Octoiier  15,  1878. 

By  Henry  H.  Hurlbut. 


CHICAGO: 

Jansen,  McCi-iRG  &  Company. 

1878. 


IllSTORICAl.    SOCIKTV    RooMS, 

Chicago,  October  17,  1878. 
Henry  H.  IIiri.hit,  Kst|., 

Dear  Sir:  -  I  have  the  honor  to  inform  you,  in  l)ehalf  of  the 
Chicago  Historical  Society,  that  a  unanimous  vote  of  thanks  was  extended  to 
you  for  your  excellent  paper  on  "Father  MAR..)rErTE  Ar  Mackinaw  asu 
Chicago,"  which  you  read  before  the  Society  on  the  evening  of  October  15, 
and  a  request  was  made  that  you  furnish  the  Society  with  a  copy  of  it  for 
preservation  in  its  archives. 

Very  Respectfully, 

ALBERT  U.   HAGKR, 

Sccre/iiry. 


^cMASTER  UmV£RSlT.Y  UfiHAlit 


Father  Marquette 


AT 


Mackinaw  and  Chicago. 


TlIK  able  and  eloquent  oration  of  Rev.  Dr.  Duflfield.  at 
Mackinaw,  published  in  the  Chicago  Times  of  the  15th  of 
August  last,  has  led  me  to  say  something  referring  to  it  and 
the  good  missionary,  as  well  as  the  proposed  enterprise  of 
erecting  an  obelisk.  I  trust  it  may  not  be  considered  alto- 
gether unpardonable,  if  1  have  questioned  or  denied  the  cor- 
rectness of  some  of  the  positions  assumed  by  the  orator 
referred  to,  for  the  truth  of  history  certainly  is  the  most  im- 
portant interest  involved. 

It  is  creditable  to  our  common  humanity  when  the  grateful 
hearts  of  all  classes  of  worthy  citizens  unite  to  pay  a  tribute 
of  respect  to  the  memory  of  a  good  man.  It  was  suggested 
.several  years  since,  as  well  as  more  recently,  that  Chicago 
should  erew.t  a  pillar  in  honor  of  Father  Marquette;  she  may 
do  so  in  the  future,  uniting,  perhaps,  with  his  name  those  of 
other  pioneers,  whose  memory  is  identified  with  Chicago  of 
long  ago.  Yet  it  seems  fitting  that,  at  the  Island  of  Macki- 
naw, now  a  national  park,  a  monument  to  the  missionary 
should  be  reared,  towering  heavenward,  at  the  Straits,  the 
grand  gateway  of  the  Northwest,  the  field  of  labor  of  the  de- 
voted priest.  Besides,  Michigan  has  a  prior  claim  to  his 
celebrity;  her  early  forests  sheltered  his  form,  she  received  his 


FATUKK    M.\U<)L'i:riK 


^ 


expiring  breath,  and  her  soil  contains  his  dust.  I  regret,  how- 
ever, that  the  orator  at  Mackinaw  deemed  it  expedient  to 
ignore  the  fact  that  Louis  Joliet  was  at  the  head  of  the  expe- 
dition wherein  Father  Marquette  unintentionally  achieved  his 
fame.  It  was  Joliet  who,  it  is  said,  had  previously  been  near 
the  Mississippi,  that  was  selected  by  the  government  of  New 
I'Vance  to  explore  the  great  river;  Marquette  was  an  ecclesi- 
astical attache.  The  one  .'^■ought  the  glory  of  the  French 
realm  by  extending  its  discoveries  and  enlarging  its  posses- 
sions; the  other  was  ambitious  to  carry  the  knowledge  of  the 
true  God  to  the  benighted  natives  of  the  wilderness.  That 
Joliet  faithfully  carried  out  his  instructions  and  fulfilled  his 
mission  in  the  expedition  to  the  Mississippi,  we  have  no  reason 
to  doubt.  But  it  was  his  great  misfortune  that,  just  upon  the 
eve  of  his  return,  and  of  rendering  the  minute  and  extended 
report  of  his  journey  and  discoveries,  he  was  capsized  from 
his  canoe  in  the  rapids  above  Montreal.  Ky  this  accident  his 
maps,  his  journal,  and  all  his  notes  and  papers  were  irrecover- 
ably lost,  and  he  barely  escaped  with  his  life.  Joliet  made  a 
report  to  the  government  from  memory,  yet  it  lacked  the 
particular  and  elaborate  items  which  made  up  the  daily 
journal,  and  hence  the  prestige  and  value  of  the  original  were 
wanting.  We  have  no  reason  to  believe  otherwise  than  that 
the  same  enterprising  and  fearless  spirit  of  adventure  attended 
the  footsteps  of  Sieur  Joliet  as  waited  upon  those  of  the  good 
missionary.  Dr.  Duffield  says:  "The  honor  of  this  di.scnv- 
er)'"  (meaning  the  Mississippi)  "has  unjustly  been  given  to 
La  Salle,  and  also  to  Father  Hennepin."  Now,  though  Dr. 
D.,  it  would  seem,  has  scarcely  been  just  to  the  memory  of 
Joliet,  I  would  deprecate  any  wrong  done  by  shorn  honors  to 
Father  Marquette.  But  really,  of  the  public  services  of  each 
of  the  gentlemen  named,  none  need  be  ignorant;  no  conceit 


■^ 


AT    .MACKINAW    AND   <  lll(A(;(). 


of  narrow-minded  authors,  nor  the  blundering  stupidity  of 
literary  quacks,  can  entail  any  lasting  injury  upon  the  fame  of 
either.  Joliet  and  Marquette  arrived  at  the  Father  of  Waters 
in  June,  1673,  while  La  Salle  did  not  reach  and  descend  that 
river  for  nearly  nine  years  afterward,  not  until  early  in  1682, 
though  he  had  dispatched  Father  Hennepin  upward  thereon 
two  years  before.  Dr.  Shea,  the  author,  whose  admiration  of 
James  Marquette  is  second  to  none,  when  referring  to  his  ex- 
pedition to  the  Mississippi  with  Joliet,  says:  "France  would 
have  derived  no  benefit  from  this  discovery  but  for  the  enter- 
prise and  persevering  courage  of  Robert  Cavelier  de  la  Salle. 
When  Joliet  passed  down  Lake  Ontario,  in  1674,  he  stopped 
at  Fort  Frontenac,  where  La  Salle  was  then  commander  un- 
der Frontenac.  He  was  thus  one  of  the  first  to  know  the 
result  of  Jolict's  voyage,  and  perhaps  was  one  of  the  Tew  that 
saw  his  maps  and  journal,  which  were  lost  before  he  reached 
the  next  French  post." 

James  Marquette  was  born  in  Laon,  France,  in  the  year 
1637,  became  a  Jesuit  at  the  age  of  seventeen,  and  twelve 
years  afterward,  in  1666,  sailed  for  Canada  as  a  missionary, 
landing  at  Quebec,  in  September  of  that  year.  During  the 
two  succeeding  years  he  was  engaged  in  studying  the  Indian 
languages,  and  in  the  spring  of  1668,  he  embarked,  via  the 
Ottawa  and  French  rivers  and  Lake  Huron,  for  the  River  St. 
Mary,  at  the  falls  of  which  a  mission  was  to  be  established, 
with  Marquette  at  its  head.  There  were  of  the  same  religious 
faith  earlier  missionaries  than  Marquette,  in  the  region  of  the 
great  upper  lakes,  who  were  brave  and  devoted  men ;  but  it 
was  Marquette's  tour  to  the  Mississippi  which  has  made  his 
name  pre-eminently  famous.  Pushing  out  as  he  did  into  the 
region  of  the  yet  undiscovered  wonders  of  the  great  valle)', 
details  of  which  journey  have  been  fortunately  preserved  to 


FAIIIKK    M.\K()l'KITK 


us  b)'  his  faithful  '"bcdicncc  to  the  instructions  of  his  Superior, 
our  admiration  is  enhsted  by  the  charm  of  its  romance.  Yet 
it  was  the  lofty  aim  of  Mar(|uctte  to  be  of  enduring  service  to 
his  fellow  men;  it  was  his  integrity,  his  unselfishness,  his  un- 
tiring zeal,  his  gentle  and  uncomplaining  disposition,  and  his 
early  self-sacrifice  near  akin  to  martyrdom,  that  command  our 
sympathies,  and  these  are  what  made  him  truly  great. 

Dr.  Dufficld,  I  think,  had  a  wrong  impression  when  he  said : 
"Taking  probably  the  short  trail  through  the  woods,  which  is 
still  distinctly  visible,  he  found  his  admirable  companion  at 
Point  St.  Ignacc."  If  1  understand  the  Doctor's  language 
correctly,  it  means  that  Marcjuette  left  the  Falls  of  St.  Mary 
(in  1673)  over  land,  for  Point  Ignace,  where  he  found  his 
"admirable  companion,"  meaning  Jolict.  There  are  facts 
which  seem  to  conflict  with  the  statement.  Ouite  unlikely  is 
it  that  Marquette,  had  he  been  at  St.  Mary,  would  have  taken 
so  uncomfortable  a  mode  of  travel  as  going  on  foot,  through 
the  swamps  and  tangles,  from  the  h'alls  to  Point  Ignace,  when 
so  con\'enient  a  mode  as  by  canoe  was  at  hand.  But  1  do 
not  believe  that  Marquette  was  ever,  cither  in  lif(^  or  death,  at 
what  is  now  called  Point  St.  Ignace.  However,  be  that  as  it 
may,  from  St.  Mary's,  in  the  autumn  of  1669,  he  was  cho.sen 
to  go  to  Lapoint,  or  Chegoimegon,  near  the  west  end  of  Lake 
Superior,  to  continue  the  labors  begun  some  years  before  by 
Allouez,  or  still  earlier  by  Menard.  In  the  spring  of  1671. 
Marquette  accompanied  the  fleeing  Hurons,  who  sought  a 
refuge  at  the  Straits  of  Mackinaw  from  the  fierce  Sioux  war- 
riors, who  had  taken  the  war-path  against  them.  I  think  the 
inference  is  a  reasonable  one,  in  the  absence  of  positive  evi- 
dence, that  for  safety  they  located  on  the  Island  of  Mackinaw . 
There,  as  I  believe,  was  the  first  mission  of  St.  Ignatius 
founded  by  Marquette;    and  thence,  in  the  spring  of  1673, 


AT    MACKINAW    AXI>   fllR'AdJ' 


Jolict,  the  leader,  havin^r  arrived,  they  departed  on  their  expe- 
dition for  the  great  river.  Dr  Duflfield  was  not,  perhaps, 
aware  that  the  mission  referred  to  occupied  several  diflfercnt 
localities,  at  various  periods,  namely:  the  Island  of  Macki- 
naw, and  the  place  on  the  north  shore  now  called  Point  St. 
I^jnace,  as  well  also  the  mainland,  south  of  the  Straits,  since 
known  as  Old  Mackinaw.  This  last-named  post  seems  to 
have  been  an  important  one,  at  least  in  the  year  1O95,  twenty 
years  after  the  death  of  Marquette,  when  La  Motte  Cadillac, 
who  had  succeeded  Louvigny  the  year  before  at  Mackinaw, 
and  subsequently  the  founder  of  Detroit,  was  in  command 
there.  In  a  letter  of  his  from  there,  of  the  year  above  named, 
he  says:  "This  village  is  one  of  the  largest  in  all  Canada. 
There  is  a  fine  fort  of  pickets,  and  si.xty  houses,  that  form  a 
street  in  a  straight  line  There  is  a  garrison  of  about  two 
hundred  men,  besides  many  other  persons  who  are  residents 
here  during  two  or  three  months  in  the  year."     *    *    *    *    •» 

"The  villages  of  the  savages,  in  which  there  are  six  or 
seven  thousand  souls,  are  about  a  pistol  shot  from  ours.  All 
the  lands  are  cleared  for  about  three  leagues  around  their  vil- 
lage, and  perfectly  well  cultivated.  They  produce  a  sufficient 
quantity  of  Indian  corn  for  the  use  of  both  the  French  and 
savage  inhabitants." 

The  early  maps  and  statements  regarding  the  mission  of 
St.  Ignatius  are  either  contradictory,  or  indefinite  and  unsat- 
isfactory. The  map  in  the  Jesuit  Relation  of  1672  shows  the 
mission  as  on  the  north  shore;  but  from  the  same  work,  in 
the  Relation  of  i6;?5,  the  year  of  Marquette's  death,  we  learn 
that  the  mission  existed  at  Old  Mackinaw,  and  a  church  edi- 
fice had  been  erected  there  after  the  departure  of  Marquette, 
in  1673.  On  Marquette's  map,  drawn  by  himself  in  1673  or 
1674,  the  mission  of  St.  Ignatius  appears  on  the  Island.     If 


8 


lATHKR    MARI^LKTTE 


any  chapel  or  church  building  was  erected  by  Marquette  dur- 
ing his  short  residence  at  the  Straits,  it  was  doubtless  a  slight 
or  temporary  structure,  and  need  not  certainly  be  looked  for 
at  this  day  at  Point  St.  Ignace.  La  Hontan's  work,  and  the 
map  therein,  have  been  quoted  as  authority  concerning  the 
church  at  St.  Ignace ;  but  La  Hontan  is  believed  by  many  to 
be  inaccurate  and  unreliable.  It  was  eight  years  after  the 
missionary  died  that  he  came  over  the  sea,  and  five  years 
later  still  when  he  appeared  in  the  West.  La  Hontan  had 
been  dismissed  from  the  service  of  the  French  government 
when  his  book  was  written,  which  was  published  in  1703. 
That  work,  it  is  understood,  was  the  product  of  ill-humor  and 
spite,  and  is  referred  to  in  the  latest  Encyclopedia,  as  "en- 
tirely untrustworthy  for  details  of  fact." 

From  a  letter  of  Dr.  J.  G.  Shea  to  myself,  I  quote  as  fol- 
lows: "Though  it  is  more  than  twenty  years  since  I  first  wrote, 
I  have  never  been  able  to  identify  the  various  positions  which 
the  mission  of  St.  Ignace  assumed  at  Mackinaw.  The  vague- 
ness and  uncertainty  continue." 

As  for  the  late  report  that  the  grave  of  Father  James  Mar- 
cjuette  has  been  discovered  and  identified,  I  must,  in  the  ab- 
sence of  satisfactory  evidence,  and  for  reasons  herein  named, 
doubt  its  truth.  Kvcn  with  the  assurance  of  Dr.  Duffield, 
and  the  plea  of  Mr.  Harncs,  that  we  may  place  entire  faith  in 
the  story,  I  must  yet,  with  all  due  deference,  cling  to  the 
probabilities,  and  believe  the  tale  a  sheer  delusion.  The  great 
difficulty  in  the  way  of  identifying  the  grave  and  remains  of 
b'ather  Marquette  is,  first,  to  establish  the  locality  or  neigh- 
borhood where  they  were  last  placed,  and  then  to  determine 
which  grave  is  the  right  one.  By  the  east  coast  of  Lake 
Michigan,  on  his  way  to  the  Straits,  it  is  well  known  that 
Father  Marcjuette  was  first  buried,  where  he  died.     Two  years 


AT    MACKINAW   AND   CIIICACJO. 


•i 


later,  that  is,  in  1677,  his  remains  are  said  to  have  been  taken 

to  Mackinaw.  T-  adition  has  it  that  his  bones  were  re-interred 
more  than  once,  and  again,  that  his  grave  within  the  founda- 
tion walls  of  a  church  on  the  north  shore  was  washed  into 
the  lake.  F'urthermore,  not  a  few  believe  that  his  last  burial 
was  at  old  Mackinaw,  on  the  south  peninsula.  The  late  Dr. 
Amsden,  of  St  Joseph,  Mich.,  who  was  familiar  with  the  lan- 
guages of  the  Indians  living  along  the  borders  of  Lake  Mich- 
igan, told,  many  years  ago,  of  some  traditionary  knowledge 
among  them  about  Father  Marquette,  and  that  they  pointed 
out  to  him  the  missionary's  grave  on  the  river  bank,  where  he 
died.  But  a  similar  tradition  about  his  grave  was  recorded  by 
Charlevoix,  who  was  on  Lake  Michigan  a  hundred  years 
earlier,  or  forty-six  years  after  Marquette's  death. 

It  is  claimed  that  the  fragments  of  a  mocock  of  Indian 
manulacturc,  supposed  to  have  inclosed  the  bones  of  Father 
Marquette,  have  been  found  within  the  ruins  of  an  old  church 
at  Point  St.  Ignace,  though  then,  unfortunately,  that  grave 
neither  presented  an  inscription  nor  contained  a  bone.  But 
it  must  be  conceded  that  the  remains  of  many  devout  Roman 
Catholics  may  have  been  buried  in  bark  mococks,  and  within 
the  walls  of  churches,  during  the  twenty  decades  which  have 
passed  since  the  remains  of  the  missionary  arrived  at  the 
Straits.  I  will  allow  that,  under  the  circumstances,  old  stone 
walls  were  very  suggestive;  local  pride,  also,  naturally,  for 
honorable  distinction,  avails  it.sclf  of  the  possibilities;  and  a 
fertile  imagination,  sometimes,  by  constructing  plausible  theo- 
ries, lends  specious  aid  to  him  that  delves  for  the  hidden. 
From  all  the  facts  of  which  we  are  as  yet  cognizant,  I  must 
believe  that  the  dust  of  Father  Marquette  still  lies  enshrouded 
m  the  depths  of  a  grave  whose  position  is  one  of  doubt  and 
uncertainty. 


10 


FATHER    MAKQUETTK 


The  writer  of  this,  not  without  some  fear  that  he  may  ha\  e 
incurred  the  charge  of  personating  the  iconoclast,  still  re- 
joices in  the  possession  of  an  immense  bump  of  reverence  for 
the  antique;  yet,  as  a  general  remark,  of  which,  of  course,  I 
make  no  special  application,  I  will  say,  when  credulous  igno- 
rance or  designing  humbuggery  essays  to  invest  the  unreal 
with  the  habiliments  of  the  true  relic,  our  faith  may  well 
stumble,  and  propriety  exclaim,  "Alas!  for  the  quidnuncs!" 

Dr.  Duflfield  says:  "On  October  25,  1674,  Marquette  again 
left  St.  Ignace  to  fulfill  a  promise  to  the  Indians  in  Illinois." 
If  the  Doctor  had  said  St.  Xavicr,  instead  of  St.  Ignace,  he 
would  have  been  nearer  right,  for  at  that  mission  on  Fox 
River,  near  Green  Bay,  he  had  just  passed  a  full  year  in  poor 
health.  From  there  he  kept  a  journal  of  his  movements, 
commencing  on  that  25th  day  of  October,  the  which  formed 
a  letter,  though  never  finished,  to  his  Superior,  Claude  Dab- 
ion,  at  Quebec.  ICven  at  this  far  away  day,  the  sympathies 
of  the  reader  of  that  journal  can  scarcely  help  being  moved 
b\-  the  infirmities  of  the  failing  missionary,  toiling  through 
the  storms  of  that  inclement  season,  without  murmur  (except- 
iii|;,  perhaps,  to  say,  "cabined  poorly  enough"),  forty  days 
from  Green  Hay  to  Chicago,  where  he  was  obliged  to  stop, 
short  of  his  destination.  The  precise  spot  where  the  mission- 
ar\-  niiide  his  temporary  home  I  am  unable  to  designate,  but 
it  was  unquestionably  upon  the  soiitJi  branch  of  Chicago 
River,  and  not  on  the  north,  as  sometimes  said.  I  think  it 
quite  likely,  that  near  where  the  outlet  of  Mud  Lake  joins  the 
south  branch,  sheltered  somewhat  by  the  grove  that  skirted 
the  water  side,  the  feeble,  though  courageous  man,  pitched 
his  tent. 

Joliet  and  Marquette,  on  their  return  from  the  Mississippi 
the  year  before,  came  by  way  of  the  Illinois,  the  Desplaines 


4. 


AT    MACKINAW    AM)  CHICAGO. 


II 


and  Chicago.  As  far  as  satisfactorily  proven,  they  were  the 
first  white  men  who  placed  foot  upon  the  soil,  or  voyaged 
upon  the  stream,  at  Chicago.  I  am  aware  that  Charlevoix 
tells  that  Nicholas  Perot  was  here  several  years  before  them, 
but  Dr.  Shea,  the  editor  of  a  late  edition  of  Charlevoix,  claims 
that  the  source  of  Charlevoix's  information  does  not  warrant 
the  statement.  I  am  inclined  to  think,  however,  that  it  would 
appear,  could  we  arrive  at  the  truth  of  the  case,  that  more 
than  one  white  man  had  been  at  Chicago  before  either  Joliet, 
Marquette,  or  Perot,  even  if  the  latter  may  have  been  here  in 
1670.  We  are  assured  that  Jean  Nicolet,  a  Frenchman,  an 
envoy  from  Canada,  was  at  Green  Bay  in  the  year  1639,  where 
he  held  a  treaty  with  several  thousand  Indians.  This  council 
u  as  held  purposely  to  form  a  reciprocal  and  friendly  acquaint- 
ance with  the  natives  whose  country  bordered  on  the  great 
upper  lakes.  It  was  designed  to  extend  the  dominion  of  the 
French  King,  Louis  XIII.,  and  specially  and  directly  to  aid 
and  further  the  traffic  of  Canadian  merchants,  who  wished  to 
furnish  their  red  brothers  of  the  wilderness,  in  exchange  for 
furs,  the  conveniences  and  luxuries,  as  well  as  the  gauds  and 
taints,  of  civilization.  Nicolet,  on  this  visit,  crossed  the  port- 
age to  the  Wisconsin,  but  we  are  not  advised  that  any  of  his 
party  went  further  south.  Yet  I  am  loth  to  believe  that  thirt\- 
\-ears  passed  away  after  Nicolet's  introduction  at  Green  Bay 
before  any  Canadian  trader  coasted  along  the  Illinois  shore  of 
Lake  Michigan,  or,  following  a  then  old-time  route,  went  up 
the  Chicago  River  and  down  the  Desplaines  to  the  interior. 
Those  early  traders  followed  the  thoroughfares  to  the  Indian 
villages;  but,  ever  greedy  for  furs  which  might  bring  lucrative 
prices  and  early  gains,  they  preserved  no  note  of  their  busi- 
ness tours;  at  least  no  record  was  left  behind,  that  I  am  aware 
of,  which  has  been  kept  to  answer  the  inquiries  of  the  present 
day. 


12 


FATHER    MARQUETTE 


It  was  the  large  Indian  village  of  Kaskaskia,  on  the  uppcr 
Illinois,  whose  people  Marquette  had  seen  on  his  return  from 
the  Mississippi  the  year  previous,  that  he  was  now,  late  in 
1 674,  attempting  to  visit.  The  route  from  Green  Bay  was  bj- 
the  way  of  Sturgeon  Bay  (then  as  now  so  called),  and  the 
portage  to  Lake  Michigan,  and  thence  along  the  lake  shore. 
Marquette  had  in  his  service  two  Frenchmen,  called  Peter 
I'orteret,  and  James;  of  the  surname  of  the  latter  we  are  not 
informed.  As  far  as  I  know,  these  assistants  of  P'ather  Mar- 
quette were  the  first,  as  well  as  the  last,  recorded  slayers  of 
the  wild  buffalo  on  Chicago  soil.  That  they  were  faithful  in 
their  attendance  upon  the  invalid  missionary,  in  those  weeks 
of  his  ebbing  life  tide,  is  quite  evident;  and  for  this,  *as  well 
as  the  fact  that  they  were  among  the  earliest  known  residents 
of  Chicago,  their  memory  will  be  preserved. 

I  quote  a  few  entries  from  Marquette's  journal,  or  last  let- 
ter, he  having  then  arrived  at  the  Chicago: 

"  Dec.  4.  We  started  well  to  reach  Portage  River,*  which 
was  frozen  half  a  foot  thick.  There  was  more  snow  there 
than  anywhere  else,  and  also  more  tracks  of  animals  and  tur- 
keys. The  navigation  of  the  lake  from  one  portage  to  the 
otherf-  is  quite  fine,  there  being  no  traverse  to  make,  and  land- 
ing being  quite  feasible  all  along,  providing  you  do  not  obsti- 
nately persist  in  traveling  in  the  breakers  and  high  winds. 
The  land  along  the  shore  is  good  for  nothing,  except  on  the 
prairies.  You  meet  eight  or  ten  pretty  fine  rivers.  Deer 
hunting  is  pretty  good  as  you  get  away  from  the  Pottawato- 
mies." 

"  Dec.  1 2.    As  they  began  to  draw  to  get  to  the  portage, :):  the 


*  -Meaning  the  Chica^^o. 

t  Meaniiv^  thost:  of  .Suntjeon  Hay  and  the  l)esplnine>. 

t  That  is,  upon  the  ice  on  the  river,  as  I  understand  it. 


^tmt 


AT    MACKINAW   AND  CEIICAGO. 


13 


Illinois  having  left,  the  Pottavvatoniies  arrived  with  much  diffi- 
culty.* We  could  not  say  mass  on  the  Feast  of  the  Conception 
on  account  of  the  bad  weather  and  the  cold.  During  our  stay 
at  the  mouth  of  the  river,  Pierre  and  Jacques  killed  three  buf- 
falo and  four  deer,  one  of  which  ran  quite  a  distance  with  his 
heart  cut  in  two.  They  contented  themselves  with  killing 
three  or  four  turkeys  of  the  many  which  were  around  our 
cabin,  because  they  were  almost  dying  of  hunger.  Jacques 
brought  in  a  partridge-f  that  he  had  killed,  every  way  resem- 
bling those  of  France,  except  that  it  had  like  two  little  wi  js 
of  three  or  four  feathers,  a  finger  long,  near  the  head,  with 
which  they  cover  the  two  sides  of  the  neck,  where  there  are 
no  feathers." 

"Dec.  14.  Being  cabined  near  the  portage,  two  leagues^ 
up  the  river,  we  resolved  to  winter  there,  on  my  inability  to 
go  farther,  being  too  much  embarrassed,  and  my  malady  not 
permitting  me  to  stand  much  fatigue." 

When  Dr.  Duffield  tells  us  that  Marquette's  "two  faithful 
companions  erected  a  log  hut  and  chapel,"  I  think  the  state- 
ment would  be  difficult  to  prove.  The  missionary's  letter 
imparts  all  we  know  regarding  the  matter.  Indeed,  I  am 
constrained  to  believe  that  the  quarters  occupied  by  Mar- 
quette, during  that  winter  of  his  sojourn  here,  were  hardly 
what  were  needed  by  a  sick  man.  His  domicile  is  called  a 
cabin ;  yet  so  were  all  their  wigwams  called  cabins  in  their 
late  journey  from  Green  Bay.  The  frames  of  those  Indian 
cabins  were  only  a  trellis-work  in  the  form  of  an  arbor,  con- 
structed of  light  poles  fastened  to  the 'ground.  Placed  by  the 
Indians  at  convenient  spots  along  shore  for  camping,  they 

*  Two  parties  of  Indians  who  left  Green  Bay  at  the  same  time  he  did  are  here 
referred  to  by  Marquette. 

+  It  was  a  grouse  or  prairie  chicken  no  doubt.  ^  - 

*  The  leagues  were  guessed  at,  of  course,  not  measured. 


'4 


FATHER   MARQUETTK 


were,  when  uncovered  and  vacated,  generally  left  standing  for 
the  use  of  the  next  household  of  those  red  and  irrepressible 
tramps  of  the  wilderness.  The  sheathing  of  those  cabin- 
frames  was  usually  of  bark,  sometimes  of  mats,  and  was 
always  carried  as  a  part  of  the  traveler's  outfit.  With  such 
also  were  Marquette  and  his  Frenchmen  doubtless  provided^ 
and  the  like  cabin-frames  were  those  which  they  used.  Such 
cabins  were  never  warmed ;  the  small  fire  in  the  centre  upon 
the  ground  merely  warmed  the  hands  and  feet  slightly  when 
held  near  it,  and  the  smoke  found  egress  through  the  opening 
above,  the  same  as  in  the  Indian  wigwams  of  to-day.  Tl:at 
house,  or  wigwam  and  chapel,  of  Marquette  at  Chicago,  possi- 
bly was  doubly  clad  with  bark,  cr  mats  and  skins,  but  I  much 
doubt  its  being  a  timber-built  edifice. 

The  journal  again  says: 

"March  30.  The  north  wind  having  prevented  the  thaw 
till  the  25th  of  March,  it  began  with  a  southerly  wind.  The 
next  day  game  began  to  appear ;  we  killed  thirty  wild  pig- 
eons, which  I  found  better  than  those  below,*  but  smaller, 
both  young  and  old.  On  the  28th,  the  ice  broke  and  choked 
above  us.  On  the  29th.  the  water  was  so  high  that  we  had 
barely  time  to  uncabin  in  haste,  put  our  things  on  trees,  and 
try  to  find  a  place  to  sleep  on  some  hillock,  the  water  gaining 
on  us  all  night;  but  having  frozen  a  little,  and  having  fallen, 
as  we  were  near  our  luggage,  the  dyke  burst  and  the  ice  went 
down ;  and  as  the  waters  arc  again  ascending  already,  we  are 
going  to  embark  to  continue  our  route." 

"March  31.  Having  started  yesterday,  "we  made  three 
leagues  on  the  river.f  going  up  without  finding  any  portage. 
We  dragged  for  half  an  arpciit.     liesides  this  outlet  the  river 

•  At  Quebec. 

+  .Mcaninj;  Mud  Lake  L-liaiinel.  _     ^ 


AT   MACKINAW  AND  CHICAGO. 


15 


has  another,*  by  which  we  must  descend.  Only  the  very 
high  grounds  escape  inundation.  That  where  we  aref  has 
increased  more  than  twelve  feet.  Here  we  began  our  port- 
age more  than  eighteen  months  ago.  Geese  and  duck  pass 
constantly.  We  contented  ourselves  with  seven.  The  ice 
still  brought  down  detains  us  here,  as  we  do  not  know  in  what 
state  the  river  is  lower  down." 

Marquette  returned  to  Chicago,  without  doubt,  after  his 
visit  to  the  Indian  village  on  the  Illinois,  and  in  the  month  of 
May,  1675,  he  passed  out  of  our  river  to  the  other  side  of  the 
lake,  and  not  only  to  the  other  side  of  it,  but  to  the  eternal 
shores  beyond.  On  his  way  to  Mackinaw,  by  the  eastern 
shore  of  the  lake,  accompanied,  doubtless,  by  the  faithful  Peter 
and  James,  he  went  ashore  at  the  mouth  of  a  river,  since 
known  by  his  name,  and  retired  by  himself,  having  requested 
the  men  to  leave  him  alone  for  a  brief  space.  But  the  good 
father  had  died  in  a  little  time,  and  they  buried  him  upon  the 
bank  of  the  stream.  Such  is  the  tradition.  So  much,  cer- 
tainly, is  not  unreasonable,  without  giving  credence  to  the 
numerous,  minute,  and  dramatic  details,  portrayed  by  imagin- 
ative and  artistic  limners,  as  attending  the  exit  of  that  true 
gentleman  and  kind-hearted  missionary. 

Marquette  was  evidently  by  nature  a  man  of  good  intel- 
lectual ability,  which  had  been  improved  by  the  culture  of 
study  and  observation.  He  was  the  first  to  discover  and  tell 
us  of  the  tidal  rise  and  fall  in  the  waters  of  Lake  Michigan. 
Nearly  a  hundred  and  fifty  years  later  the  same  facts  were 
noticed  by  an  officer  of  our  army,  but  how  much  or  what 
truth  has  since  been  demonstrated,  or  what  deductions  have 


*  Meaning,  no  doubt,  the  Desplaines. 
t  On  or  near  the  Desplaines,  no  doubt. 


DATE  DUE 


i6 


been  est- 
nomena,  _ 
Variou_ 
pear  in  tl 
reject  m; 
Romanis 
to  which 
the  govef 
triguc,  ty- 
Marquett- 
most  imp- 


I.L.L  / 


He  is  I 

probably 

parativel} 
His  phys: 
quite  unfi 

took    UpO;      CAT.    NO.    113  7 

we  are  no      .     _.. ,  ^ 

will  not  soon  be  forgotten. 


i  1   ■  1981 


phe- 

-!,  ap- 
.may 
r  the 
)rder 
yola, 
y  in- 
ither 
~;  the 

-675; 
-com- 

_3ath. 

were 


'*        ^t.»lbAl& 


li  he 

shed 
jr  iiiiiiitji  taiit^,  111s  name 


CHICAGO: 

FERGLS   rKINTINC  COMPANY. 


•np 


.  >,.>|w*i|p  11  ^Mf^TiHpi^^qmiipt^ii^iOTi^ 


598555  r 


J 


i6 


lATHKR    MAKQUKTTK. 


been  established  by  scientific  observers  regarding  the  phe- 
nomena, I  am  unable  to  say. 

V'arious  utterances,  indicating  high  Christian  principle,  ap- 
pear in  the  letters  of  Marquette;  and  though  some  of  us  maj- 
reject  many  dogmas  pertaining  to  the  religiouc  faith  of  the 
Romanists, —  though  we  may  place  no  confidence  in  the  Order 
to  which  Marquette  belonged,  that  Order  founded  by  Loyola, 
the  government  of  which  has  been  so  often  marked  by  in- 
trigue, tyranny,  and  crime, — yet  all  must  concede  to  Father 
Marquette  a  sincere  devotion  to  what  he  believed  to  be  the 
most  important  interests  of  his  fellow  men. 

He  is  understood  to  have  died  on  the  i8th  of  May,  1675; 
probably  the  28th,  as  we  now  count  the  time.  He  was  com- 
paratively a  young  man,  being  only  thirty-eight  at  his  death. 
His  physical  organization  and  powers,  we  must  believe,  were 
quite  unfitted  for  the  ordeal  of  labor  and  exposure  which  he 
took  upon  himself  Yet  the  sum  of  what  he  accomplished 
we  are  not  now  to  know;  as  for  earthly  immortality,  his  name 
will  not  soon  be  forgotten. 


CHICAGO: 

FERGIS   I'KINTING   COMPANY. 


^'^^•••'•''^mf^wm 


598555 


^nnp 


352. 


<p 


) 


.^- 


Fergus 'Ohioairo  PublioatJionil 


HISTllillCAL. 


f, 


W    f 

J 


I. 

ANtlAI^S  OF  CHICAGO:  a  Lee 

iiJ-c  deliverett'lMBforc  thc.l'hicaKo  I.yauni,  Jn 

21,    1840.       IJy  JOSKI'II    \.    lUl.KSTIKR,    KsiA 

kumil>lishc(l  frnin  the  uritiinal  edition  of  1841 
witnUii;  lutrodutlinn,  written  by  the  author 
i87<);;and,  alwj,  a  fieview  of  the  T.ecliuc,  pu^ 
liihetl  in  the  Chicago  'f'hune  in  1872.     Trie 
25  c«ntH.  ;: 

FBRtoS'  DIRECTORY  OF  THi 

CrrV  OF  CHICAGO,  1839;  with  city  an 
County  Officers,  C^huyches,  I'ublit:  tiuildin^i 
HoteW  etc.;  also,  list  •  of  Sheriffs  of  Cool, . 
County  i\nd  Mayors  of  the  City  since  their  of*., 
^'ai>ization ;  together  willi  I'oll-f'Jst^f  the  Firjt 
City  Flection,  (Tuesday,  May  ad,  1837);  an* 
also,  List  of  I'urchiwers  of  J-ots  in  Fort  Deaf* 
horn  Addition,  the  Mo., of  the  Lots  and  the 
Prices  I'aid  (1839).  Compiled  by  Koiii'iCc::; 
Fi-Rct'S.     Price,  56' cents. 

a 

THE  LAST  OF  THE  ILL1N0I%; 

AND  A  SKETCH  OF  THIC  POTTAWAt 
TOMIES:  Read  ,l)fefore  the  Chicago  Historical 
Society,  Deceinber  13th,  1870;  also,  I 

(miGIN  OF  THE  PRAIRIES :  Read  l)efore| 
the  Ottawa  Academy  of  Natural  Sciences,  Dei" 
cember  30th,   1869.      By  Hon.  Jon.x   J)kan| 
C.vroN,   LL.1).,  late  Chief-Justice  of  Illinois,!^ 
Price,  25  cents, 

■  4.   '  f: 

AN  HISTORICAL  SKETCH  Ol| 

THE  EARLV,aMQVEMKNT  IN  llAm 
XOIS  FOR  THE  l,EGALIZAlTON  0» 
SLAVERY:  Read  at  the  Annual  Meeting  of 
'the  Chicago  Historical  Society,  December  ^^ 
1864.  By, Hon.  W.M.  IL  1^k<)WN,  Ex-Pre.sU, 
dent  of  the  Society^     Price,  25  cents. 

5. 

BIOGRAPHIC  At   SKETCHES 

OF  SOkjL  OF  THE  EARLY  SETTLERS'  - 
OF  rH»:CITY'0!F  CH1CA(;0.  Part  {^ 
contains, Sketches  o/Hon.  S.  Lisle  Smith,  (iea^ 
Davis,  i>r. ,  PJlitiw  Maxwell,  John  j!  Brown^ 
Richard  L.^lsr>n,  Col.  Lewis  C.  Kerchival^; 
Uriah  P.  Harris,  Jlenry  B,  Clarke,  and  Sheriff: 
SamnelJ.  Lowe.  By  Wm.  H.  Bi!shnki.4 
Price,  25  cents.  .  ?,'  ' 


BIOGRAPHICAL   S^irrCHBS 

OF  SOME  OF  THE  EA|tW«P'l'TLEKS 
OF  THE  CITY  OF  CHICAGO;  Part  H. 
contains  Sketches  of  VVm,  H.'Hrown,  Ktui., U. 
\V.  Raynil(ni<l,t  Esci.,  JL^Vv  ticwmnon,"^iK|.^ 
Chas.  Walker,' Esq.,  TfWmas  Church,  tE«|. 
Price,  25  cents.  . 

7. 
EARLY  CHICAGO:  A  Lecture  dJfe^. 

livci-ed  in  the  Sunday  Course,  at  AJcCormick's 
Hall,  May  7th,  1876.  By,  Hon.  John  Wknt- 
woKTii.     With  portrait.  J.Price,  35  cents. 

8. 

EARLY  CHICAGO:  A  Lecture  de 

livered  in  the  Sunaay  Course,  at  McCortnick's 
Hall,  April  it,  1875.  With  additional  matttr, 
never  liefore  pubUshetl.  By  Hon.  JOHN  Went- 
woRTH.    With  Ste|i  Portrait.    Price,  35  cents. 

©. 

PRESENT    AND    FUTURE 

PROSPECTS  OF  CHICA(;Oi  An  Addli^s 
delivered  Ijefore  the  Chicago  LyCtium,  Jan,  20^ 
1846.  By  Henry  BiCowv,  Esg.,  Author  of 
"History  of  IllinoiJi." 

RI  E   AND  PROGRESS  OF  CHICAGO: 

An  Address  delivered  before  the  Centennial 
Library  Association,  March  21,  1876.  % 
JAMKS  A.  MARSHALL,  Esq. 

CHICAGO  in  1836:  "STRANG^  EARLY 
DAYS."  By  HARRt^:t  MAIjlTiNi^AU,  author 
of  "Society  m  America,''    Price,  25  Cents. 

ADDRESSES  BEFORE  THE 

CHICAOQ  HISTORICAL  SOCIETY,  Bv 
Hon.  J.  \.  S«;ammon,  Hon.  I.  N.  ArnoUj, 
Wm.  Hicklin(&,  Esq.,  Col,  g»«S*THTJBBARi>, 
and  HiRAM  W-  BecKWITII,  Esq.  ;  Sketches  of 
Col.  John  H.  Kinzie,  by  his  Wife,  JULIEITE 
A.  Kinzie;  Geo,  Manierre,  Luther  Haven,  and 
and  other  early  Settlers;  aliio,.ofBiJUy  Caldwell 
and  Shabonee;  "The  Winnebago^Scare;"  July, 
1827;  hnd  other  innwrtant.mjittpr  never  before 
iiublished,    ccmnefeieil '  with  ''ffarly  Chicago. " 


Price,  25  cents. 


'■■•iv    i 


Sent  by  Maiion  receiptor  price,  by  the  PubHshepSy 

Fergus  Printing  Co.,  244*r8  Illinois  Street,  •GhicagW 


M 


.'♦ 


m 


